A Look Inside The French Laundry’s Stunning $10M Renovation
Chef Thomas Keller’s three-starred Michelin restaurant receives a $10,000,000 renovation—its first major revamp in over 20 years.
Since its opening in 1994, The French Laundry has been recognized as a beloved mecca for fine French cuisine. Now, the high-end restaurant is giving guests another reason to make a reservation. After collaborating with design studio Snøhetta and San Francisco–based firm Envelope A+D, Chef Keller has recently unveiled the highly anticipated renovation for his exclusive Wine Country eatery located in Yountville, California.
Arriving at The French Laundry, guests now begin their experience through a sequence of new garden spaces. Visitors follow a bluestone path through the entrance into the heart of the breathtaking garden.
Photo: Michael Grimm
Shaped by simple geometrics that are both modern and reminiscent of agrarian architectural forms, the renovation doubles the size of the existing landscape and provides a world-class working environment for Keller and his team within the historic two-story stone cottage.
The addition is clad in contemporary fritted glass and shou sugi ban—rustic charred wood—by Delta Millworks. Both materials contrast with the historic stonework of the original building.
Photo: Michael Grimm
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The latest kitchen annex houses the restaurant’s supporting functions, including the site's butchery, produce storage, and wine cellar that stores up to 15,000 bottles.
Flush at the corners where the eaves of the roof meet the siding, the kitchen’s streamlined body is partly covered in charred wood.
Photo: Michael Grimm
Throughout the project, Snøhetta spent time with Chef Keller’s team, observing them in the kitchen. The new layout "not only optimizes the team's efficiency but also fosters a meaningful environment for the chefs who work there," the team explains.
The pitched low-slung roofs of the kitchen and annex allude to their utilitarian function.
Photo: Michael Grimm
The familiarity and warmth of the burned finish juxtapose the fritted glass that wraps around the corner of the building.
Photo: Michael Grimm
When viewed up close, the frit reveals a dense composition of layered curves, evoking the motions of the chefs’ hands at work.
Photo: Michael Grimm
The 2,000-square-foot kitchen provides a comfortable, light-filled environment for the chefs, and is now configured as a single, continuous space. Keller chose Dekton for the walls and countertops. "Number one, it has high resistance to heat, which is great," he says. "And it's actually stain-proof. From an aesthetic point of view, it's quite stunning when you walk in."
Photo: Michael Grimm
With 25 percent more working space than the previous kitchen, the expansion is meticulously organized and allows direct visual connections between all stations.
Photo: Michael Grimm
The curved form of the kitchen ceiling evokes a tablecloth being gently unfurled across a table, patterned with delicate wrinkles in the gypsum fiber-reinforced panels. These sweeping vaults conceal the ceiling’s functional elements, while also revealing long skylights that flood the kitchen with natural light. The concave ceiling enhances the acoustics within the space.
Photo: Michael Grimm
A look at the new dining area off the manicured garden.
Photo: Michael Grimm
The French Laundry’s iconic blue door.
Photo: Michael Grimm
To read more about the world-renowned restaurant, or to make a reservation, check out the website here.
Project Credits:
Design Architect & Landscape Architect: Snøhetta
Executive Architect: Envelope A+D
Local Landscape Architect: Terremoto
Local Landscape Architect Consultant: Martin Poirier, PWP Landscape
Architecture Acoustician: Arup Construction Manager: Wright Contracting
Food Service Consultant: Harrison Koellner, LLC
Structural Engineer: Vaziri Structural Engineering MEP
Engineers: Guttmann Blaevoet Consulting Engineering
Civil Engineer: CAB Consulting Engineering
Geotechnical Engineer: RGH Consultants, Inc.
Traffic Consultant: Crane Transportation Group
Waterproofing Consultant: Neumann Sloat Blanco Architects LLP
Ceiling Manufacturer: GC Products Solar Panels: NRG
Walls, flooring, and countertops: Dekton by Cosentino Ventilated
Ceiling systems: Halton America
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